Our Story

Once upon a time...

Karl Kupers and Fred Fleming began farming in new ways to keep their land productive for decades to come and to enable their wheat to be sold at a fair price. These farming ideas are called sustainable agriculture.

Karl and Fred loved the idea of sustainable agriculture so much that they completely transformed their farms. Karl professes, "Farming has to be a passion. You have to have the willingness to come to the new land and burn your ship so there’s no way of going back home to the old ways."

This philosophy brought Karl and Fred to a new way of farming and selling grain. So Shepherd's Grain was born.

Why Shepherd's Grain?

Not only is Shepherd's Grain wheat good for the environment and the economy but it tastes delicious. "We decided to grow sustainable wheat and were happy to discover that it tastes better.", exclaimed Fred. "Artisan bakeries are very impressed with Shepherd's Grain wheat. A baker tried blending them together and they made a very flavorful and functional flour. Recently I was told that our flour has the most integrity that he has seen in his 30 years of baking", says Karl. So on top of being eco-friendly the flour is excellent to bake with.

Today there are nearly 60 growers who raise wheat for Shepherd's Grain. These growers are from three geographical areas, southern Alberta, Pacific Northwest and southern California. They all use sustainable farming methods and are or becoming certified by a third party audit. At the end of the day, Fred says, "We grow wheat. Wheat that represents locally grown, family farmers. By purchasing Shepherd's Grain flour products not only do you become a food activist, you also become a disciple to save the family farm."